THERE’S an exciting double header of wheelchair finals at the National Basketball Performance Centre in Manchester this Sunday, where two champions will be crowned.

At 2.30pm, it’s the Championship Grand Final between Rochdale Hornets and Castleford Tigers, and that’s followed by the main event, the Super League Grand Final featuring Halifax Panthers and London Roosters (kick-off 5.30pm).

It’s certainly an unusual situation in the Super League encounter, as for the first time, Leeds Rhinos don’t feature, having played in all five previous finals, from 2019-24, winning in 2021 and 2024.

This is also the first year that they didn’t win the League Leaders’ Shield (and that would have been the case even without their points deduction, and ejection from the play-offs, for failing to fulfil a fixture).

Leeds’ old rivals Halifax go into the final having failed to lose a match all season, their only minor blip coming at the hands of this Sunday’s opponents, when the two sides drew 40-all in the opening round.

Halifax’s record also extends to the Challenge Cup, which they won in June after defeating London Roosters 46-24 in an exciting encounter at Robin Park in Wigan. They go into the final as favourites and will be looking to win a record third Super League title.

The return of Jack Brown from Queensland really appears to have inspired the side, and he’s delighted to be playing in his second final of the season with his native Panthers outfit.

“I think this will be the Grand Final that the sport deserves,” he said.

“I’m over the moon as to where the team is at right now. We’ve won the Challenge Cup, finished top of the regular season table and the play-off table.

“We’re working really hard now to put ourselves in the best position to achieve what we know we are capable of.”

London are appearing in their first ever Grand Final having finally qualified for the big dance after losing in the semi-finals for each of the last three years.

They have also had an excellent season, with their only defeats coming at the hands of Halifax, in the aforementioned Challenge Cup final and more recently a narrow 36-28 loss in the best game of the three-week play-offs, and an encounter which could have gone either way.

Roosters’ captain Lewis King said: “We fell short in the Challenge Cup, but now we’ve another opportunity to win some silverware. We’ve got the best out of our players to get to the final and that’s a massive achievement.

“There was only eight points in it last time we faced each other, so it’s tight, and if we’re on our best game, we’ve a good chance of beating them this time around.”

Whilst the Super League Grand Final is between the two sides many thought would be challenging for the title, the Championship affair is between a pair that most wouldn’t have predicted would be there at the start of the season.

Castleford, in their very first season, won the Challenge Trophy earlier this year, and qualified for the Grand Final thanks to a one-point win over Hereford Harriers in the semi-final.

“This time last year we only had four players,” said captain Stefano Proietti. “Each player sees this team as our extended family. Not one of us would have expected to have done so well as a brand-new team on the block.

“What our coaches have managed to build is nothing short of amazing. The way the players have bonded and respect each other is inspiring to say the least. Come what may on Sunday when we face Rochdale, we are honoured to be there doing what we love.”

Their opponents, Rochdale Hornets, are far more experienced, and are rewarded with a final after the best season in their history.

They formed in 2022, and for the first three years in their history had losing seasons.

In fact their nine wins this year in the competition, including their dramatic 41-37 win over Bradford Bulls in the semi-final, are more than they achieved in the three previous seasons combined.

Rochdale head coach Pete Hird said: “We’ve learned a lot from previous seasons, and we now have a solid squad who trust each other and believe in their abilities. We’ve quietly got on with our own game and are happy to have flown under the radar.

“We’re all very upbeat about the final and we’re looking forward to facing Castleford Tigers for the first time.”

PREVIOUS SUPER LEAGUE GRAND FINALS
2019    Halifax 50–42 Leeds Rhinos (Medway Park Sports Centre, Gillingham)
2020    Tournament abandoned due to the COVID-19 pandemic
2021    Leeds Rhinos 52–36 Leyland Warriors (Medway Park Sports Centre, Gillingham)
2022    Halifax Panthers 52–48 Leeds Rhinos (Belle Vue Sports Village, Manchester)
2023    Wigan Warriors 50–42 Leeds Rhinos (National Basketball Centre, Manchester)
2024    Leeds Rhinos 52–32 Halifax Panthers (Allam Sports Centre, Hull)

PREVIOUS CHAMPIONSHIP GRAND FINALS
2019    Hull FC 44-38 Bradford Bulls (Medway Park Sports Centre, Gillingham)
2020    Tournament abandoned due to the COVID-19 pandemic
2021    Hereford Harriers 75–32 Warrington Wolves (Medway Park Sports Centre, Gillingham)
2022    North Wales Crusaders 102–46 Hull FC (Sedburgh Sports Centre, Bradford)
2023    North Wales Crusaders 46-40 Wigan Warriors (National Basketball Centre, Manchester)
2024    Sheffield Eagles 38-36 Gravesend Dynamite (Allam Sports Centre, Hull)